On May 8th and 9th MedCities Secretary General, Xavier Tiana, visited Izmir and Antalya, the Turkish members of the association, in order to strengthen relationship with their political teams and technical departments.

On May 8th, a meeting was held with Izmir Deputy Mayor Mr Sırrı Aydoğan, as well as different departments within Izmir Metropolitan Municipality such as strategic planning, urban agriculture, EU Programs and international relations. Izmir showed its interest to reinforce its role in MedCities as well to further develop joint initiatives, especially in the field of territorial development and city promotion.

On May 9th, the MedCities delegation was received in Antalya by Mayor Menderes Türel, who set sustainable tourism and coastal management as top priorities of the city within the network. Mayor Türel also expressed his willingness to participate in other multi-partner projects with different cities from the region.

Both cities expressed their commitment to attend the General Assembly of MedCities, which will take place next October 4th and 5th in Barcelona.